Gravel packs are placed in wellbores between a screen and a formation face and/or casing to prevent formation sand from flowing into the wellbore and to improve wellbore and near-wellbore conductivity. The conductivity at the wellbore and near-wellbore is important because any damage in these locations significantly increases the pressure drop of fluid flow, thereby reducing the producibility or injectivity of the well.
Further, current placement techniques for gravel packs can be a complex procedure requiring several stages and the proper functioning of moving parts in a hostile wellbore environment. Accordingly, there is a demand for further improvements in this area of technology.